Among the Dead
by Hailey-kun
Summary: Sarah loses her memory and takes center stage in the story of her Purgatory. Watching her old friends, the sheltered girl is guided by a mysterious figure, as she witnesses death, fear, intimacy, love (SarahxLuke?), and loss on an emotional journey to experience and manage what her father desperately kept her from.
1. Chapter 1 - Lucid Dreams (Hypnagogia)

It's hot. In an intense darkness my body burns with incredible pain. This is all I can remember, laying on the ground - ears blaring, fingers tensing, legs and abdomen contracting in what seems to be void. There is no time. No space. Only me. Burning.

Then, a dazzling light. From behind me, a cold palm rests on my shoulder blade. The chilling sensation is a gentle breeze, and the calmness of this hand rushes through my veins, vanquishing the flames.

"Sarah." A voice. The sound is muffled by my still ringing ears. "Sarah?" it asks. The voice is deep and comforting, yet still nearly indistinguishable. I roll over to face the sound. "Hey... Sarah?" From the bright light, an outline of a man begins to appear. I can't distinguish any features. He is shrouded, crouched by my side, and speaking to me again with a hushed bass. "It's alright Sarah. You can relax." The words flow freely through my body, each syllable of the declaration acting as a command. My body finally exhales, and before I know it, I fall peacefully into darkness again. Falling faster... faster, faster-

"Shi-...!" My eyes spring open. I'm awake and sitting upright. My heart is racing, and I'm nearly hyperventilating. Taking a moment to calm down, I look around, but there is nothing but a vast white expanse. Dazed, I mumble to myself, "Where am I?"

"Here!"

Shocked, I jolt backward and let out an "Eep!" at the immediate and chipper response. It sounded like it came from in front me, but there is still only white space. Anxiously, I ask, "Where are you?"

A tall shrouded figure, like the one before, slowly emerges from a white haze. This time he appears about a meter in front of me. Moving a few steps forward, he calmly asks "How are you, Sarah?"

Confused, I sputter, "Is... m-... Am I Sarah?" The figure warmly nods as if he expected the question, and after a beat, he reaches out to help me up. Autonomously, my hand meets his in a firm yet gentle clasp, and he pulls me to my feet.

"Well it's good to see you on your feet," The figure commented. Before I can conjure a thought, he continues, "I suppose you might have a few questions." I want to nod, but I end up staring blankly. From two heads above me, the figure seems to be looking for a response. The features of his face and body are still impossible to see, but he carries on, "Well, Sarah, don't worry. You can't be hurt by anything around you here. Just take a look."

In the crisp silence following his words, I notice the cool and comfortable embrace of the white realm. The space seems to go on for miles, and the white backdrop, itself, gives a refined and controlled brilliance, not too bright, yet still shimmering with its graceful and quiet beauty. I take a conscious breath of relief while reflecting on the figure's words. After a minute of observation in this tranquility, I gather enough to say, "There really isn't anything here, anyway, is there?"

The figure chuckles and replies "Right. Enjoy this peace. It won't be around for long. We've got work to do."

Worried, I ask, "What do you mean? What's going to happen?"

"You'll see. Just... don't worry."

"What?" In moments, shadows start emerging from the white space like holes in fabric. "What are those?" I ask.

Plainly, the figure says, "Don't worry, they are just part of your Purgatory."

"This is WHAT?" I cry.

The figure has no response. I start to feel a burning sensation again as the shadows grow darker, faster, and closer. A slow crescendo of magma begins in my ears, and the vast world continues shrinking around me. The figure, trying to coax me starts repeating, "Everything is alright. Just breathe, Sarah." The air's old clarity clots into a viscous fluid, and the shadows set my throat ablaze.

Gasping for air I try to yell, "What's happening?"

The figure, still holding my hand firmly, keeps going, "None of these things can hurt you. This is _your_ Purgatory." I grip harder, falling to my knees, my mind succumbing to mania. Shadows continue appearing, now blocking out the light, and at this point, I would do anything for that spacious white sanctuary of moments ago. He continues, "It's for you to have that place, so ple-." The rest of his words are muted by the screaming primordial humidity of fear and my rushing I shut my eyes to the wall of asphyxiating calamity until all that is left is the deep red darkness of my own eyelids and the figure's hand that I so desperately clench.

"Sarah. It's okay, Sarah." A soft light. "Open your eyes. Nothing around you can hurt you here.

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**This is my very first attempt at a fanfic, so feedback is greatly appreciated!**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Thank you for reading :D  
Updates will be posted at least once a week ;O**


	2. Chapter 2 - Sleep Inertia

"Hey Clementine."

Clementine? In surprise, my eyes spring open. A beautiful lavender sky draping over an evergreen tree line greets me. I turn to see the speaker, who is a sickly looking woman holding a baby. Laying on the floor of a dusty garage with some other people, Clementine replies quietly, "Hey. How's he doing?"

The woman answers, "He's perfect." An avalanche of cold air comes over us.

"You used to know them," The figure says over the hushed dialogue, finally letting go of my hand. Clementine gives the woman an overcoat as suggested by a smooth voiced black man in the corner.

I quickly respond, "I did?"

"Mmmhm, you and the girl were best friends." I see Clementine and the woman continue talking and exchange the baby.

Looking back at the figure, I ask, "Can I talk to them?"

The figure softly hushes me, saying, "there may be a time," while still watching the interaction. His words came smoothly, as if I was somehow following a script, and shortly afterward, the air gets heavy.

A voice speaks from behind me. "Look at you, like a big sister." An older man, Kenny, walks past the figure and I. He's a big guy - not too tall but still imposing with an air of power, appropriately paired with a greying mustache, beard, and mullet. His bloodied eye bandages did not soften his appearance, and even while appreciating the tender scene, the man demands authority.

"Did you feel that?" The figure asks me. I am distracted by Kenny, who is holding and now sniffing the baby. I stand baffled for a moment or two until Kenny walks off, taking the baby with him.

I look back to Clementine, but she is staring right at me. I start to think, "Who is she? What did I do wrong?" Unnerved and confused, I start to fold into myself. Clementine stands up and walks over. With each step, I feel my knees bend further inward and my upper body crumple like paper. "Wait, why isn't she slowing down? Oh no, I'm in trouble…! Ow…?" I flinch, but feel only a comforting warmth. The figure seems to be a restraining himself from a chuckle, even without a discernible face.

I take a look behind me to realize that the girl Clementine walked through me. I look down and then back at the figure. "What's so funny? Is this actually real?"

The figure, collected, softly explains, "This is, in fact, a reality. You have passed through the space where your old friends are now, it is just that you aren't _really_ a part of what happens here. It might be hard to grasp, but your situation is kind of like spilt milk."

After a short period of digestion, I hesitantly state, "So I… died."

Cautiously, the figure replies, "Yes. You can't remember due to your circumstances, but it will come back when you are ready." His words and tone are positive enough where I can't do anything but guess that I will be alright, but my mind starts drawing a blank after attempting to suck everything in. The figure, responsive, continues, "Hey now, don't get yourself concerned with what happened. It can be really nice because it's history and we can focus on what's happening now."

"I guess so?" I respond, unsure of where the figure is going. "I mean I just feel like I'm watching stuff happen."

"Well, your presence has subtle effects on things around you."

There is a thud on the wall. "What was that?" I ask. The others sleeping on the floor start to stir. Kenny walks past me and starts arguing with the voice of a younger man on the other side of the wall to the distaste of the baby which perturbs it's mother.

Turning to face the opening of the garage, I tune in to hear Kenny angrily saying, "... Luke? Of all the childish bullshit." I perk up at his name like Clementine's.

"Can you tell me about Luke?" I ask the figure.

After a moment of contemplation he replies, "Go see for yourself." I walk over to put a face to the name. Handsome and explosive, Luke is ranting about a "Jane." He stands as tall as Kenny, and would probably be more approachable if it wasn't for his mood and his terrifying grimace. I only wish I could ease the emotional pain he was brandishing fervently.

In an outburst of energy Luke shouts, casting his anger to the world at large, and in the heat of the verbal skirmish I lip, "I wish I could make everything alright."

Under the disagreement and the crying baby, I hear the mother demandingly ask, "Kenny, where's my baby?"

Soon after, the black man asks, "Is everything alright," halting the argument.

A moment passes. "See?" The figure says to me.

"W-what?"

"_You_ did that. _Your will_ motivated that man to stop the argument." I could guess that I was responsible, but the correlation was too weak. In response to my disbelief, The figure contends, "You'll see exactly how much power you have soon enough. It will be essential for your passage."

Looking back at the group, I'm relieved that things are starting to simmer down while they discuss plans for the next day. I notice the mother, who Luke referred to as Rebecca, coughing as if she is quite ill.

The figure crouches to talk to me. "Take a rest, Sarah. It looks like they've decided to move at dawn."

"Am I supposed to follow them?"

The figure asks with amusement, "Do you have any other choice?" I sit against a wall to think about it for a minute while the figure walks to the garage's opening to take in the moonlight. Further lost than when I first woke up, I try to sort out something or anything, but weary from the drama, I nod off.

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**Thank you for reading! I'm sorry for taking a little longer than expected D: I should have another chapter before next Monday.**

**Please feel free to critique my work; feedback is always appreciated! ;)**


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